Durgesh Pathak is the youngest member of the Aam Aadmi Party’s Political Affairs Committee. Currently, he is the MLA from the Rajendra Nagar assembly. Besides his legislative role, Pathak also holds the position of party in-charge in MCD.
Political analysts credit Pathak for playing a pivotal role in establishing a strong volunteer base before elections. Additionally, he played a crucial part in setting up AAP’s volunteer network in Delhi ahead of the 2015 Delhi assembly elections.
Excerpts from an interview with Amit Pandey:
Delhi recently witnessed a deluge, leading to waterlogging and road collapses. In view of the upcoming G20 summit, is the MCD prepared for it?
Cities are designed with rain capacity in mind. For instance, during the design of Goa, they considered its rainfall and seasons. Similar measures were taken for Chandigarh and Udaipur. If we talk about this year’s rainfall then it was unprecedented; it was probably the highest rainfall in the last 40 years. In addition, water from HP and Haryana increased the Yamuna’s level. We are working to address the situation. Routine desilting of drains is conducted, and if it’s normal rainfall, waterlogging should be minimized. As for the G-20 summit, it is during the winter, so we don’t anticipate such problems.
Landfills pose a significant challenge for MCD. What action has AAP taken in the last 8 months in this direction?
If you go and check the three landfills, you can observe a decrease in their height. Cleaning efforts have doubled compared to previous years. During the BJP’s tenure, around 5,000 tonne of waste was disposed of which has now increased threefold. We are also involving multiple agencies to accelerate the process.
Of late, the dog menace has troubled people. How will MCD address its?
The major issue with dogs is that you cannot take them away from their location. So, there is only one solution to the problem, which is to sterilise them. BJP neglected dog sterilisation and even profited from it. We are implementing a sterilisation policy, aiming to establish more than 50 sterilisation centres, compared to the current 16.
The standing committee of MCD has still not been formed. How has this affected the body’s functioning?
Actually, this is a problem of the BJP that they are not ready to accept the defeat. First, they insisted that they will select the Alderman, then they obstruct the process by saying that Alderman will also get the right to vote. Later, It was rejected by the Supreme Court. BJP’s attitude will not benefit anyone. Because of the delay in forming the committee, MCD’s financial functioning is in limbo; however, this will not obstruct our work.
It is said that you played a big role in AAP’s victory in the MCD polls. What major challenges did you face?
In Delhi, most people are office-goers and they are not quite interested in politics. Even when they are, they are not aware of the nitty-gritty of the political structure. Many were unaware of the division of responsibilities between the Delhi government and the MCD. However, when people understood this, they voted against the BJP.
What positive changes have been made in MCD schools? Well, as they say, Rome was not built in a day. It takes time to improve hospitals, schools, classes etc. But there is enthusiasm among MCD teachers now. The AAP government provides funds, ensuring that they receive salaries on time, which is a significant improvement compared to the previous 15 years of BJP’s rule. Mismanagement issues have been addressed, and we are also sending principals and teachers on foreign trips, showing our commitment to improvement.
